


No Finer Place to be

by ZJpotter



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies)
Genre: Gen, Little Peter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-13
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-12-14 18:10:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11788641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZJpotter/pseuds/ZJpotter
Summary: “No.”“Why not?”“We ain’t goin’ t’no beach Quill.”How he wound up at the beach he didn’t know. What he did know is that Quill was going to be scrubbing the vents for a week.





	No Finer Place to be

Life on a Ravager ship was pretty routine. Cycles went by, shifts were changed, late night drinks were had. Jobs were done with brilliant execution. Every now and then came “down-time”. It was the space between jobs-seemingly everlasting and boring. The crew often got into fights out of pure boredom, restlessness running through their veins. The crew became irritable and you got the feeling it wasn’t too long before whispers of a mutiny were ‘bout to spread. In short it was a great feeling when it was over.   
~~~~~~~  
“Kraglin.” 

The first mate didn’t even glance up. He stared ahead, hands fixed on the controls, eyes glazed over from boredom. 

“ Ey Cap’n.” 

“There yet?” 

“Few more jumps to go,” Kraglin said, “Got ‘nough time to get stuff together if ya haven’t.” 

The last bit wasn’t directed at him, that he could tell. It was farther away dripping with disinterest. 

“All good to go!” came the chirpy reply. 

Quill slipped out underneath a dashboard covered in a good layer of dirt and grime. His music thing (Walkman he’d come to learn) was on and he could hear it faintly through the headphones. 

“Finished fixin’ it yet, boy?” Yondu asked. 

Quill nodded, “An’ the table an’ the stabilizer an’ the other things too.” 

The boy quickly fell into “down-time” rhythm. He was a ball of pent up energy and his complaining was getting on Yondu’s last nerve. The whole crew was getting on his last nerve. Kraglin came up with the idea of docking at the nearest planet. Yondu didn’t deny him. 

“Get in the seat boy.” 

Quill immediately got up off the floor and into the co-pilot’s seat. 

“Where are we going?” he asked once he’d gotten comfortable. 

Yondu didn’t respond. He’d had enough of Quill’s questions for the past week. 

“How long until we get there?” he asked again with the same innocent curiosity. 

Yondu glared at this time. Quill looked right back up. 

“Will we be there soon?” 

That got him a cuff on the back of the head. 

“Any more questions and you won’t be goin’ nowhere.” 

Quill rolled his eyes and turned his music up.   
~~~~~~~  
“We there now?” Quill asked once they’d landed. 

He was practically bouncing in the co-pilot’s seat. 

Kraglin nodded and unbuckled himself. 

“Tell the crew they got the rest of the day to do whatever,” Yondu instructed, “If they ain’t back by daylight I’m leavin’ ‘em here.” 

“Will do Cap’n.” Kraglin said and left the pilot’s chair. 

Quill jumped out the chair and started to run out the room. Yondu grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. 

“C’mon Yondu, let me go!” 

He was squirming under his grip, face scrunched in concentration. Yondu set him down only to keep a firm grip on his shoulder. 

In truth, he didn’t want to keep an eye on the boy. He was a pain, good for getting’ in places they couldn’t, but a pain nonetheless. He was too Terran-stuck out like a sore thumb, too hyper, too nice, too Peter. Supposed his mama raised ‘im that way cause he sure wouldn’t have been that way had his father raised him. Might not have been nothin’ at all.   
Yet no one else was gonna take him. The Ravagers treasured their time off and usually spent it at the nearest bar. Havin’ the kid around would only ruin their fun. Yondu was tempted to dump the role of caretaker on some unsuspecting crew member. Yet he didn’t. Didn’t know why either. 

He led the kid out the room himself, Peter humming along to his music. They caught up with Kraglin near the ship’s exit. 

“Message received.” He said. 

Yondu gave a firm nod and Kraglin returned it. Quill smiled up at Kraglin and Kraglin ruffled his hair none too gently. Quill scowled in return. 

“See y’round Pete.”   
~~~~~~

“Yondu. Hey Yondu.” 

“What?” 

“Can we go here?” 

Quill held up a card showing a shimmering beach. It was overly bright and didn’t look like the kind of place he’d ever go to. They’d been checking out the market to keep Quill entertained. Yondu wasn’t enjoying it in the slightest as the vendors lit up at Quill’s happy demeanor. The boy was charming to them. He was young and jumpy with enough smarts to round him out. Beyond that, he was Terran. A Terran wasn’t too common around these parts. 

“No.” 

“Why not?” 

“We ain’t goin’ t’no beach Quill.” 

“Oh come on please?” Quill looked at the card again, “I know how to swim so you don’t have to watch me.” 

“Interested in beaches kid?” 

The voice was so sudden Quill jumped in surprise. Yondu turned around. The vendor was smiling at them with the usual insincere smile.

“Mhm!” Quill showed him the card, “Where’s this one?” 

“Right down the road! In fact, it’s the finest beach around.” 

“Y’hear that! Finest one around!” Quill repeated. 

“We ain’t goin’.” 

Quill huffed and placed the card back on the rack with the other card. He looked at the vendor with wide and apologetic eyes. 

“Sorry, I guess we’re not going.” 

“Aw that’s too bad kid, I bet you’d have a lovely time,” she said. 

“I would. I really would.” 

Yondu rolled his eyes and nudged Quill away from the vendor.   
~~~~~~~~  
How he wound up at the beach he didn’t know. What he did know is that Quill was going to be scrubbing the vents for a week. 

The little brat was already halfway down the beach, laughter floating back to Yondu. Quill scooped up a heap of sand and threw it in the air. He spun around and it rained down. Within seconds, Quill was flat on the ground. The boy was still laughing.

Yondu stared at him, in something he could only identify as annoyance. If you’ve seen one beach you’ve seen ‘em all. This beach wasn’t anything spectacular. The sand was no finer than the sand of another beach, the water no bluer. Yet Quill was playing in the sand like it was something he’d never seen before. 

Quill sat up, wriggling out of his shirt. He rolled up his pants and then stood, waiting. 

“Guard this,” Quill said handing over the Walkman to Yondu when he came close. 

“Boy, if – 

“Please.” 

Yondu scoffed. Please. Please wasn’t going to change anyone’s mind. Spare my life, please. Don’t steal from us, please. Hold my Walkman, please. 

(He wondered when the boy started to trust him so much. The first times with the boy were spent trying to get him to understand them, to get out of small spaces he hid in, to stop crying, to eat, to do something other than be afraid.   
Here he was now handing his most prized possession over to the man he was most afraid of.) 

Quill didn’t give him much time to think about it. The boy was already off to the water. He jumped in, feet first and shrieked when the water touched him. He stepped out and then jumped back in. He repeated the process which each wave. 

“Don’t tell me yer ‘fraid of water now,” Yondu called. 

Quill was too busy playing to respond. 

Yondu plopped down on the sand. He twisted the Walkman’s cords in one hand and ran sand through the fingers of his other hand. Quill’s laughter faded into the distance.   
The boy was nine. He’s been nine for a while now so it wasn’t a new fact. Yet sometimes, he didn’t act like it. He tried to act tougher (and failed tremendously) and smarter, and bigger. Then in times like this, when he and the kid were the only ones on the beach he was nine. Just a kid. Just a softhearted, small, scrawny little kid. 

“Yondu, I found a crab-OW!” 

Yondu looked up to see Quill with his finger in his mouth. 

“It bit me!” 

Yondu let out a hoarse laugh. 

“Not funny,” Quill frowned and walked out the water. 

He plopped down beside Yondu, fingers already buried in the sand. He pushed it together, a sizeable mound already forming. 

“Wha’s that?” Yondu asked. 

“Sandcastle,” Quill said, “I don’t have a bucket so my hands will have to do. With a bucket you fill it up to the top with dry and wet sand. When it’s all full you tip it over and shimmy it off. What’s left is your sand castle! Some people make really good sandcastles.” 

Yondu looked at the crumbling mound Quill was making. Quill was not one of those people. 

He pushed the sand up some more and ran one hand around the sides to make it smooth.

“Whatcha think?” Quill asked looking up with an expectant smile. 

Yondu stared at it. One side had already caved in on itself and the whole thing looked pitiful. 

“It’s awful,” Yondu said. 

Quill demolished the “sandcastle” with a single swipe of his arm. 

“You try.” 

“I ain’t makin’ no sandcastle Quill.” 

“Come on! It’s fun! Just try. Please.” Make a sandcastle, Please. 

Again, Quill didn’t bother waiting for an answer. He ran back to the water repeating his method of running and jumping and shrieking. 

Yondu stared at the sand. There was no way he was going to build one of Quill’s sandcastles. It was one of the last things he wanted to do. Maybe he could drop Quill off with Kraglin later. Leave for the night with Tulk ‘n Oblo and some of the guys. Leave the planet soon after that. Be back to the usual routine; give anyone a chance at his arrow who disagreed. Sounded like a pretty decent plan. 

It took Yondu another few minutes for him to realize he didn’t hear Quill. Never mind hear him; he didn’t see him. The only evidence Quill was ever on the beach was his Walkman and a demolished sandcastle. 

Yondu shot to his feet, “Quill!” 

No reply. It could be that Quill was just playin’ a trick , but a deeply hidden, paranoid part of Yondu feared the worst. If someone took his Terran…(not like Quill was his. Nope. He was just a Terran who he happened to be keeping away from his father.)

“QUILL!” 

He immediately waded in the water, coat becoming heavier as it got wet. Red eyes scanned the surface just short of frantic. He was not going to lose the kid on his watch.   
The waves stopped for a moment and the dull color of Quill’s shorts was seen. Yondu swiped at the water, missing his shirt by an inch. He waded in further until the water was up to his knees. He swiped again this time grabbing Quill’s shorts….and Quill with it. The boy was limp in his grip, sopping wet and heavy. 

Yondu gritted his teeth as he waded out the water. He got down on one knee, adjusting Quill so that he was using his propped knee as a support. A good hit on the back that should do the trick. 

And it did. 

Quill immediately started hacking, coughing, sputtering up water. 

“What’re tryin’a do boy, swallow the whole ocean?” Yondu kept patting the boy’s back. 

Quill eventually stopped coughing up water, chest heaving in attempt to breath and tears pricking his eyes. 

“Breath Quill, c’mon, in n’ out, yeah jus like that.” 

It took a few moments for Quill to fully stop coughing. Good. He was okay. 

“Thought you said y’know how t’swim.” 

“I do,” Quill protested face scrunched in what looked like a pout. 

“Clearly.” 

“…..The waves got too big for me,” Quill said, “No more right now.”

Quill fell into silence. Yondu watched him as the boy sifted sand through his hands. He nearly drowned. The boy seemed somewhat shaken up about it but he looked fine other than his sopping wet shorts. Yondu gave an inward sigh, shrugged off his coat, and dropped in around the boy’s shoulders. Quill’s hands found his way to the fabric and pulled it close before looking at the captain. 

“Don’t get used to it,” Yondu muttered. 

Quill nodded before reaching for his beloved Walkman. He slipped the headphones around his neck and pressed a button. The music was loud enough for them both to hear. ~~~~~~~~  
“Boy, if you don’t hurry up I’m gonna let the crabs eatcha.” 

Quill jogged a bit and slowed down again. The planet’s sun had started to set encasing the entire beach in a golden glow. It was better to head back now instead of when they wouldn’t be able to see nothin’. 

“How long till we get to the ship?” Quill asked. 

Yondu sighed and looked down at the little Terran at his side. He looked dazed almost and was walking all sluggish. 

“Tired?”

Quill shook his head, “Nope. Gotta tell Kraglin about today.” 

Yondu snorted. They continued the walk down the beach until there was only one pair of footsteps crunching the sand. 

“Quill!” 

Yondu turned around to see the boy standing still ready to fall over. He was swaying almost like he was still in the water. Yondu walked back to him and hoisted the boy up so that he was on his hip. Quill leaned into his side suppressing a yawn. 

“Not tired?” Yondu asked. 

“Nope.” 

“Good, then y’can clean the bridge when we get back.” 

Quill gave a noise of protest. 

By the time they got back to the Eclector it was completely dark. If anyone wondered about Yondu and the sleeping Terran on his hip they kept their smug comments to themselves.

**Author's Note:**

> My first fic on Ao3!  
> I feel like the title should be acknowledged. The title is from a line in "Lake Shore Drive" by Aliotta Haynes Jeremiah. The fic was kind of inspired by it too. I hoped you all enjoyed the it,. Thanks for reading!


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